WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — As there are more mass killings and more murders, more and more people are interested in guns.
The kinds of people who own guns seem to be changing. Guns are being bought by more women, especially women of color.
The National Shooting Sports Foundation says that the trends started to change when the flu started.
The high numbers of domestic abuse and other violent crimes against Black women could be a push.
Locally, CBS12 talked to the owner of West Palm Beach’s Guns and Range Training Center.
Alex Shkop, the store’s owner, said that more women are coming in to buy their first gun.
Shkop said it’s just the world we live in now, where you need to know how to protect yourself. There could be many reasons for this.
Shkop said, “Women are just becoming more independent. There are single women and single moms who don’t have anyone else at home to protect them, so it’s kind of a thing.”
From 2020 to 2022, one in five U.S. families bought a gun, according to research from the University of Chicago. During that time, there was a 77 percent rise in the number of women who owned guns.
Nicholas Yalley, a trainer, told CBS12 that most of his groups are made up of women, so this number doesn’t surprise him.
“Guns are great because they even out the difference in strength between men and women. In this community and society, women are more fragile than men, which makes them more equal. To put it simply, it is a leveler. “This gives them a way to protect themselves from men who want to take advantage of women when they are alone or weak,” Yalley said.
Since the government doesn’t keep track of deals, it’s hard to get a full picture of how gun sales work.
